Veterinarians have long brought their healthcare services clients and patients on ranches, farms, or even homes. Due to the rise demand among pet owners looking for at-home service, mobile veterinarian clinics have grown over the last two years. Moreover, compared to a fixed clinic, this kind of veterinary treatment facility is significantly more affordable to establish and run, according to veterinarians than traditional clinics. Call us for a free estimate, but the trailer can be outfitted for roughly $45,000 with an all-in cost including equipment between $200,000 - $250,000. If you're evaluating a mobile unit for your clinic, give us a [...]

Do more follow up. Remember when all you had to do was make your product for your next family get-together? When you didn't need to know how much your pie cost you to make? Those were the days. But, now that you're turning your pie-baking (or other food product) into a business, there's a lot more to do. Beyond calculating product cost, designing labels, and sending in farmer's market applications, you have to sell your product. Selling your product requires pounding the pavement. You have to find retail outlets - from small corner stores to large grocery stores [...]

This post should be called "How to avoid spending $3,429 in legal fees". Why? Because that's what I just did. I spent my month's earnings on legal fees. So much for paying rent. It's important you hear my story -- and take action to protect your intellectual property. (skip the story and go right to learning how to protect your company) Here's the story (then I'll get to how to protect your recipes, company name, etc.): Back in July, we received a letter from a lawyer who represented a food company (who's going to remain anonymous because my lawyer said so) [...]

I've launched cookies, energy bars, and mustard. Each venture resulted in valuable industry lessons. The mustard company? Those were the most valuable. I learned things that would shape how I view the rest of my life. Here's what I'd do differently next time: Get Great Packaging from the Start When you can't get your idea for your food business out of your head, it's time to start putting some context around your brand. What's the product name? The company name? What does the logo look like? What about packaging? What about your containers? Are there labels? Is there hot-stamped foil? [...]

How to Land a Large Purchase Order. I just shipped four pallets of product to a large retailer. While I haven't been paid yet (that'll be a fun walk to the bank), I wanted to write the process I used to land larger purchase orders and how I fulfilled them (which basically is a crash course on how to do it). For me, it's a review on what went right and what went wrong. For you, it's a chance to see what's possible beyond farmer's markets and small-town retailers. It's by no means easy, but at least you'll [...]

Labor Day, a US federal holiday celebrated every first Monday of September, is an annual event that honors the American labor movement. It’s a day for honoring, recognizing, and appreciating the contributions of honest, hardworking laborers to the achievements and developments in all sectors of US society. Use any of these slogans, captions, and quotes in your Labor Day social media posts. If you’re running a business establishment and you wish to have a sale or a special on Labor Day, these slogans, taglines, and captions will also help effectively announce your offers. Labor Day Marketing Slogans Labor Day Captions [...]

A food truck is a large vehicle that is modified to contain equipment to cook, prepare, serve, and sell meals, from simple fast foods and snacks to stunning gourmet meals. A food truck may have its own freezer, oven, an entire kitchen, or even foldable counters for customers to sit down. Food trucks are major drivers of the street food industry, serving thousands of people every day. In fact, people flock to the same places where food trucks are regularly or permanently stationed. Such places, often called food truck parks, are lively places filled with gastronomic delights, socializing, and business [...]

Pricing is one of the most challenging parts of running a food business whether it's a food truck, restaurant, or baked good. The right price on the shelf (and in turn, to stores, distributors, and brokers) determines your success. You could sell very little of a premium product and a ton of a low-priced product. The challenge? You need to know where you fall. And the strategy that's going to get you there. It took me six months to decide I wanted to test my prices. One of my mentors kept nudging me. "Test your prices! What's the worst that could [...]

Have you been approached by a daily deal site like Groupon or Living Social for your food truck or restaurant? What about a site run by a TV station or newspaper? If you have, chances are you've thought about what a daily deal would mean for your business. And maybe you've jumped at the opportunity to be featured. But, that could cause problems. Daily deals are just like any other business decision. They have to be thought about and discussed with business partners, family and friends. Then, a decision should be reached on whether or not to move forward. To [...]

When you open your own co-packing facility or starting a concession business, you could spend months Googling for used cooking equipment - searching Craigslist, eBay, YouTube, etc. You end up calling companies who don't return your phone calls because you're small potatoes to them, and when equipment arrives it's like fifty times better than Christmas. Buying equipment is terrifying and exciting. It's a BIG purchase. And it can be a day's worth of spinning your wheels if you don't know what you're looking for. Sometimes, even a single word change yields the search results you're actually looking for. Recently, I purchased [...]